Medline, ClearCount Partner to Sponsor New Training from AORN to Prevent Retained Surgical Items

The Association of periOperative Registered Nurses (AORN) has recently released the AORN Retained Surgical Items Confidence-Based Learning Module (CBL) based on the association's current Recommended Practices for Prevention of Retained Surgical Items (RSIs). The CBL training is designed to determine what each learner knows about preventing RSIs and their level of confidence in their knowledge.

Preventing retained surgical items is a key patient safety focus in the perioperative setting because any surgical item left in a patient, whether it's a sponge, towel, instrument fragment or other surgical item, can lead to complications with the patient's recovery. The successful prevention of retained surgical items requires the knowledge and coordination of every member of the perioperative team.

The development of the CBL was made possible by an educational grant from Medline Industries, Inc. and ClearCount Medical Solutions, Inc. to the AORN Foundation. In addition, the companies will fund free access to the module for the first 500 registrants.

"This new RSI Confidence-Based Learning module will help perioperative nurses understand the aspects of counting and the use of adjunct technology to account for soft goods, sharps and instruments," says Susan Bakewell, MS, RN-BC, AORN director of perioperative education.

The RSI learning module is designed for directors, managers, educators, staff nurses and other personnel working in traditional operating rooms, ambulatory surgery centers, physicians' offices, cardiac catheterization laboratories, endoscopy suites, radiology departments and other areas where surgery and other invasive procedures are performed.

Both AORN and ClearCount will demonstrate the new module at the 58th Annual AORN Congress, March 21-23 in Philadelphia. Registration for the training will begin on Monday, March 28 and is available at www.aorn.org/cbl.